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Federal programs

Stack on top of provincial credits

Administered by CAVCO / CRA

Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC)

Tax credit

25% of qualified labour

The federal content credit. It returns 25% of qualified Canadian labour expenditure, with that labour capped at 60% of net production cost — an effective ceiling of about 15% of the budget.

Eligibility

  • Prescribed taxable Canadian corporation, Canadian-controlled
  • Production must earn 6 of 10 CAVCO content points (or qualify as a treaty co-production)
  • Canadian producer must retain control and a share of revenues
  • Distribution commitment in Canada within two years of completion

Qualifying spend

  • Salaries and wages paid to Canadian residents
  • Remuneration under eligible service contracts with Canadians

Caps and limits

  • Qualified labour expenditure is limited to 60% of production cost net of assistance
  • Effective maximum of roughly 15% of net production cost

Excluded

  • Non-Canadian labour
  • Goods, equipment and non-labour costs
  • News, talk, sports, game shows, reality and advertising formats

Minimum spend

No statutory minimum budget

Stacking

Stacks with provincial CanCon credits. Cannot be combined with the federal PSTC on the same production.

How to apply

Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office (CAVCO), Canadian Heritage, with CRA — Part A certificate before or during production; Part B on completion

Filed with the corporate return; CRA processes the refund.

SourcesCAVCO — CPTCVerified 2026-08

Film or Video Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC)

Tax credit

16% of qualified Canadian labour

The federal service credit for foreign and non-certified domestic productions. No Canadian content test — the only requirement is that the work and the labour are Canadian.

Eligibility

  • Eligible production corporation with a permanent establishment in Canada
  • Corporation owns the copyright, or contracts directly with the copyright owner
  • No Canadian content point requirement

Qualifying spend

  • Salaries and wages to Canadian residents
  • Eligible service contract remuneration to Canadian individuals and corporations

Caps and limits

  • No per-project or annual cap

Excluded

  • Non-resident cast and crew
  • Equipment, travel and other non-labour costs
  • Productions that claim the CPTC

Minimum spend

CAD $1M total cost for a feature or single episode over 30 minutes; $200,000 per episode of 30 minutes or less

Stacking

Stacks with provincial service credits such as BC PSTC, Ontario OPSTC and Québec's service credit.

How to apply

CAVCO (accreditation certificate) and CRA — Accreditation certificate, then claim with the corporate return

Loan-out and service-contract structures need to be mapped early to preserve eligibility.

SourcesCAVCO — PSTCVerified 2026-08

Telefilm Canada — Production and Development Programs

Fund

Equity and grant financing, not a rate

Telefilm finances Canadian feature films through development, production, promotion and Talent to Watch streams. Support is selective and application-driven rather than formula-based.

Eligibility

  • Canadian-owned and controlled production company
  • Canadian feature film content; treaty co-productions eligible
  • Distribution or broadcast commitment typically required outside first-feature streams

Qualifying spend

  • Development, production and promotion costs per program guidelines

Caps and limits

  • Envelope and stream-specific ceilings set each fiscal year

Excluded

  • Service productions
  • Non-Canadian-controlled applicants

Minimum spend

Program dependent

Stacking

Counted as assistance, which reduces the qualified expenditure base of tax credits.

How to apply

Telefilm Canada — Fixed intake deadlines by program and stream

Talent to Watch targets first features; the Production Program runs on selective and performance streams.

SourcesTelefilm CanadaVerified 2026-08

Canada Media Fund (CMF)

Fund

Performance and program envelopes

The main federal funder for Canadian television and digital media. Financing flows through broadcaster performance envelopes and selective program streams, including a dedicated experimental digital media stream.

Eligibility

  • Canadian production company
  • Convergent stream requires a Canadian broadcaster or platform licence commitment
  • Content must meet CMF Canadian certification requirements

Qualifying spend

  • Eligible production and digital component costs per CMF guidelines

Caps and limits

  • Per-project and per-envelope ceilings set in the annual program guidelines

Excluded

  • Foreign service productions
  • Advertising and corporate content

Minimum spend

Program dependent; broadcaster licence thresholds apply to the convergent stream

Stacking

Treated as assistance for tax credit purposes and typically layered with CPTC and provincial credits.

How to apply

Canada Media Fund — Annual guidelines with stream-specific deadlines

Envelope funding is triggered by the broadcaster; program funding is applied for directly.

SourcesCanada Media FundVerified 2026-08

Research summary only — confirm current rates with the administering agency before budgeting. Talk to Better Half Labs